If you Hold On, Life Won't Change
by ippondatara
Summary: Continuing where the game left off, we find our heroes on a road trip to deliver the Leader of the Phantom Thieves to his hometown...with a few detours. Some fluff I wrote to mend my heart after finishing P5. Mostly a writing exercise but if people like it, i'll keep it rolling.
1. Chapter 1

"Is this how you all felt when we were driving around Mementos? This is horrible…"

Morgana attempted to stretch and dug into Akira's lap, causing him to wince. Beside him, Ryuji was snoring loudly, and Yusuke was attempting to frame the rolling countryside with his fingers.

"Oddly enough, you were a more comfortable ride, but it's a good thing we're not on railroad tracks this time. This van sucks…" Ann whined in the front passenger seat.

"Blame Shido. Legislator's Pins are worthless, and gods don't leave behind any good treasure…" Futaba kicked her feet and commented from behind her laptop, dominating the space of the backseat. Haru, next to her, kindly made space for Futaba's propensity to move around.

Akira sighed. "Why don't we take five? We've been on the road for a couple hours now. We're getting pretty close to our first stop, but it's good not to push ourselves."

Ryuji roused from his slumber at the mention of a break. "Huh, good, I could use a good stretch. My leg fell asleep…"

"That's not the only part of you that did. Any chance we could just kick Ryuji out at the next stop?"

"You damn cat! I can't believe I missed you!" Ryuji leapt at the cat, causing Yusuke to lose his focus and Akira to jump as well. Morgana shot to the other end of the car, causing chaos as he lept to the backseat, and onto Haru's lap.

"Would you guys quiet down please?" Makoto snapped. In an instant, the car was silent. She had been quietly driving for some time. Akira's eyes widened as he looked over at her, seeing her knuckles whiten on the wheel.

"Makoto, pull over at the next exit, I think we could all use a few minutes to catch our breath." Akira said calmly.

Makoto paused. "...Ok." She returned to silence, and there was a stiff tension in the air…

The area was a little further from the ocean than their last stop. The team was surrounded by a decently thick wood, with little to no civilization to be seen. There was a small dirt road leading away from a bus stop, and a small town in the distance.

Akira stretched his arms into the sky and took a deep breath. He looked at the sky for a moment, and then turned to his friends. "We've made some good time today. Let's hang out here for a little while, and I will take over driving. Meet back here in half an hour." The team nodded. Ryuji was off first, shouting that he would bring back snacks for everyone. Ann chased off after him.

Yusuke had already taken his sketchbook out and was roughing out the trees and foliage in the area, while Haru had chased off after Morgana, who was already on a stroll in the woods, shouting "Mona-chan, wait for me!" and running somewhat daintily.

Futaba and Makoto were still in the car, windows rolled down. Akira peered inside, seeing Futaba with a familiar expression of focus, indicating that she wouldn't be moving any time soon.

Akira turned his attention to Makoto, who looked as if she was collapsed against the seat, her eyes closed and a distinct frown on her face. Akira grinned, and leaned in through the window to kiss her cheek.

She opened her eyes in shock, and by the time she turned her head, Akira had already backed away slightly, allowing their eyes to meet. Makoto attempted to smile, but her eyes wavered while looking into his, betraying her feelings.

"Let's take a walk. It's been a while since it was just the two of us," Akira suggested. Makoto could only offer a weak nod, and opened the door. Akira stepped away, allowing Makoto her space, and then stepped in to fill it, wrapping his arm around hers and interlocking his fingers with hers. She practically wrapped her entire being around his arm before separating slightly, remaining close as they walked away.

They walked until they could hear no sounds but the noises of the forest, slowly, and in relative silence.

"You ever gonna tell me what's on your mind?" Akira inquired in his usual, calm, but warm, manner.

"You already know. You always know what's on my mind," Makoto stated harshly. She sighed. "...I'm sorry…"

The two stopped and sat on a log next to one another, evoking memories of Akira's room above Leblanc. She placed her head on his chest, and he leaned down to kiss the top of her head as she did. The two nuzzled each other affectionately.

"You know this isn't forever. I've only got a year left in school and-"

"Dammit I know it isn't forever." She interrupted him sharply, and in pain. He waited.

"Before I met you, I didn't...I didn't even know who I was. I was a coward. I couldn't recognize myself in a mirror. But oddly, I never even thought about such things. Until you came."

Akira shifted very slightly, his heart beat echoing into Makoto's ears.

"I changed. Permanently. I can't ever go back to who I was, and you did that."

Akira sighed. "You worked hard, too." Akira pondered briefly why she was going over so many things they had talked about before.

"Of course I did! But I would have never made that effort without you." Makoto kept her face down, knowing that eye contact would have meant instant tears. "I know it isn't forever, I just…" her voice trailed off. Finally, she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face into his chest, beginning to sob.

Akira wrapped his arms around her to the best of his ability, bringing one hand up to stroke her hair as she started to sob harder and harder, muffling her pained screams with his torso. There, she cried and cried, taking a few moments to breathe properly. Akira didn't waver, and held her steady.

After a few minutes, she calmed herself. "...I'm going to miss you."

"I know. I'm going to miss you, too." They sat in this embrace in silence, save for the chirping of birds.

"You know…" Akira began, "You would never have been this emotional before. You've really grown, Makoto."

She looked up into his eyes, and saw his smile. "How do you constantly keep your cool? You're gonna make a girl think you don't care…" She smiled as she brushed tears from her eyes.

Akira's eyes widened and he blushed. "Of course I care! I love you!"

They both blushed. "I love you, too…" Makoto said softly.

They sat in silence for a few minutes more. Makoto began to reflect, and found that these silent moments were the moments she most valued with her beloved Trickster. The life of an honor student rarely had time for such relaxation. She felt comfortable in a way she had never found, even aside of her sense of belonging with the Phantom Thieves.

Akira smiled at her. "Do you know the place we're going to?"

Makoto looked up at him again, with a curious expression. "Well, no. In fact, I was wondering why you were just giving directions, instead of telling us where we were headed." Makoto flipped to rest her head on his lap, looking up at his messy hair.

Akira grinned. "I was gonna leave it a surprise, but we're headed for Inaba, by way of Kanazawa."

Makoto turned her head. "Inaba? Is that your hometown? And why Kanazawa?"

Akira shook his head. "No, but it's pretty close by. There's just something I want to check out there. As for Kanazawa…" He paused and took out his smartphone, tapping on it for a few minutes before revealing the screen to Makoto. "..I would have thought you would know about one of the top law schools in the country, miss police commissioner." Akira smirked triumphantly.

Makoto shot up. "Wait, we're going to a law school? I mean, that's definitely one of my top picks, but-"

Akira put a finger to her lips. "Are you doubting your leader?" He said somewhat arrogantly. "I do have quite a bit of sway with some people. As it turns out, Kawakami-sensei knows some of the faculty there, and they've arranged an interview." He smirked again. "If you're up for it."

Makoto blushed and her eyes darted around, trying to settle on a place to look. "But, with the whole team? They don't need to come along, is this really ok…?"

Akira chuckled. "Haru was the one who recommended it actually, and most of the rest of them already know. I didn't bother telling Ryuji, but I doubt he'll care if we can find some good junk food nearby." Makoto looked on in stunned silence.

"I haven't even told you the best part, and you're already speechless. Maybe I should just wait-" Akira's teasing was interrupted by Makoto's utterly shocked expression.

"Whoa, what best part? What are you scheming?"

"Well, I know Tokyo U will want you. And if that's what you want to do, then no problem. But Kanazawa has one particular perk. You see, my hometown is Tsubata. Only a half an hour away by car, or maybe an hour by train."

Makoto seemed stunned, and Akira waved a hand in front of her face, half teasing.

She suddenly broke from her stupor and leaned up into a kiss. It was deep, and passionate. Akira felt her surprisingly soft hand wrap around the back of his head, pulling him deeper into the kiss. When she finally pulled away, she was beaming. "You know, I could have gotten that interview on my own."

Akira smiled weakly. "I know, but we had a lot going on. I mean, we did save the world."

Makoto smacked his chest. "I'm serious! How did you even manage this while you were in prison?"

Akira sighed. "Well, it wasn't easy. You'll have to thank your sister for managing all of the letters." He paused and smiled. "Except for the ones I sent you. Can't have your sister reading those."

Makoto blushed, remembering the...shocking intimacy that was shared in those letters. "Still, how do you do this? Not just for me, but everyone we've met, you go out of your way to help in such profound ways. You're...absolutely incredible."

Akira blushed, a rare sight to behold. "I don't really know what to say to that. Once I see what I can do, it becomes the only thing on my mind."

Makoto laughed. "You would have a half-assed explanation like that. Well, it's fine. Kanazawa, huh?"

Akira looked up to the sky, the blue with flecks of white cloud peeking through the trees. He grinned. "Yeah...We should be getting back."

Makoto tugged at his waist. "Just a little longer…"

Akira could not find it within himself to disagree, so the two enjoyed the serenity of the woods for a few moments longer...


	2. Chapter 2

Futaba frowned.

Her various coding projects were near to completion, and it was evident that she would have to set some new goals for herself. Deciding that the back of a van was no place to structure a new project, she decided to get some fresh air and stretch her legs. Unfortunately, her key item seemed to be off.

Inari was around, and Ryuji and Ann were walking back. Still, Futaba couldn't help but feel a bit selfish. At that moment, a wicked smile crossed her face, and she looked at her phone.

"...Just a little longer.." a somewhat processed voice stated. Futaba grinned. She zeroed in on the signal, and took off.

Ryuji scratched his head and looked at Ann. "Hey, where do you think Futaba is running off to?"

Ann shrugged. "Eh, who knows. Probably to find Akira. You know, he and Makoto have been spending a lot of time together lately…"

Ryuji looked at Ann stupidly. "For real?!" His dopey expression cracked into a grin. "Oh, I see. So that's what he was doing in Hawaii."

Ann blushed a little. "He did say he liked smart girls. Well, good for them. They're a good fit." She stopped and looked at Ryuji, twirling her hair a little. "You know, first Shiho moved, and now our leader is going, too. Yusuke isn't going to our school, and Haru and Makoto are graduating. It'll just be the two of us to look out for Futaba."

Ryuji chuckled. "Well I guess we could always ask Mishima. But I don't think he could handle her."

Ann looked to the ground and dug her hell into the dirt road. "...Hey…"

Ryuji had an expression of concern, but kept his posture as he looked over his old friend. "What's up?"

Ann stared at the ground, and then looked up at him, beaming. She giggled a little. "Nevermind. We'll be fine. Still, I can't believe you didn't notice Akira and Makoto have been dating."

Ryuji held his mouth agape. "Wait, I thought they were just spending time together! They're dating? What the eff, man!?" He stomped onto the ground and ran off after Futaba.

Ann chased after him. "Ryuji, you moron, wait!"

Akira played with Makoto's hair, keeping his calm smile as they sat, nestled together in the woods. He looked out at the treeline. His smile disappeared, as he felt his perception shift.

Somehow, even after the Metaverse collapsed, Akira kept his Third Eye. At first he had thought he was making it up. On an ordinary day, he wouldn't even see that much. The people tied to his Persona abilities stood out, and his observational skill increased dramatically.

Like any talent, this one had to be honed. He tried to take in even the most subtle of movements of the forest. He was able to zero in on some birds, some bugs, and the way the wind moved the trees. Everything slowed to a crawl, and the world grew nearly silent, a slight white noise drowning out anything he didn't focus on.

His eye twitched, and he smirked to himself as he allowed his perception to return to normal. He nudged Makoto. "I think we're about to have some company. Think it's time we told them?"

Makoto purred against his chest, "I think they probably already know," and then pushed herself up, stretching her back and arms.

Ryuji burst from the treeline. "No way! Ann, you were right!" He walked up with a playful scowl, bringing a fist down onto Akira's head.

Akira swiftly dodged, causing Ryuji to lose his balance and fall over the log. "What's up, man?" Akira teased.

Ryuji looked up sheepishly. "You could have told me you were dating miss prez."

Akira dodged his gaze. "I didn't think you'd be interested."

Makoto smacked his chest. "We're sorry, Ryuji. It was hard to talk about with everything going on. Plus he was in prison for a while…"

Ryuji shrugged. "Ah, come on, that don't matter. So, how far have you gone?"

"Ryuji! I'm sorry, Makoto, I tried to stop him…" Ann said, bursting through the treeline and putting her hands to her knees, panting.

"It's fine. I expected something like this would happen eventually. It is Ryuji we're talking about," Makoto replied, covering her smile with the back of her hand.

"What's that sposed to mean?" Ryuji whined, frowning. "Anyways, i'm hungry. I got us some snacks in the town nearby. Let's head back to the van and pig out. You can tell us all about it there." Ryuji grinned.

Akira placed a kiss on Makoto's head and then stood. "That sounds like a plan. We should have a meeting, too." He paused. "And Futaba, you don't need to listen in secret."

Futaba stepped out from behind a tree with a slight frown. "Aw man, I was mega ninja mode. Your observational skills are totally cheating."

Akira chuckled. "We're almost all here. Let's head back to the van. We need to discuss our next move."

"Next move? I thought the Phantom Thieves were disbanding…" Ann said, her voice pained by the end of her statement.

Akira chuckled. "I'm afraid not. The Phantom Thieves will be continuing operations. I'll tell you more when we're all together. As usual, I have a plan." He smirked confidently, inspiring a smile from his friends. Together, they walked off into the trees.

Haru finally caught up to Morgana, panting as she walked up to him. "Mona-chan, you didn't hear me calling after you? I was chasing you for a while…" Her voice trailed off with a combination of concern and exasperation.

Morgana darted up a tree. "Sorry, Haru. I got a weird feeling, but it turns out it's nothing." He sighed, and leapt back down. "I hadn't had a feeling like that since the Metaverse collapsed, so I was hoping…"

Haru looked down, furrowing her brow. "Hoping you'd find a clue to make you human, right? I'm sorry…"

Morgana looked into Haru's eyes. Cats are usually not very expressive, but Haru could sense his smile, and returned it. "Don't worry about it," Morgana quickly stated to stem her worries. "We've got a lot of time to figure it out. After all, we still need to track down Wakaba Ishiki's research. Plus, our leader seems to have a plan for us for now."

Haru beamed. "Right. And i'll be sure to help you out, too. If there's anything my company can do…"

Morgana chimed in, "No, I don't want you to have to overstep your boundaries unless it's necessary. For now, we should put our faith in Joker."

Haru smiled. "Shall we head back to them then?"

Morgana purred, and trotted back towards the van, Haru close behind.

When the rest of the gang appeared from the trees, Morgana was calmly nestled in Haru's lap, sitting at the bus stop near where they had parked. Yusuke hadn't moved, buried in his sketchbook a short distance away. He picked up the noise of the crowd and looked up. "Hm? Wasn't everyone going to go and take a walk?"

Ann sighed. "We already did, Yusuke. You should really learn to be at least a little attentive."

Yusuke looked shocked. "I'm very attentive. To what I'm paying attention to."

Morgana chuckled. "Meaning, his art."

The group shared a laugh, while Yusuke looked on confused. Paying it little mind, he walked over closer and joined the group.

Akira cleared his throat. "Alright. Let's get this meeting started. First, we'll go over what we know. From Mementos onward. Mona?"

Morgana spoke up. "We had assumed that the entirety of the Metaverse collapsed after Joker destroyed Yaldabaoth. Mementos is gone, after all. But the Metaverse left behind a couple of unusual artefacts."

Ryuji laughed. "Yeah, like a talking cat with a bandana."

Morgana snapped, "Shut it, Ryuji."

Akira spoke up again. "In addition, we always assumed our powers came from the Metaverse. But in truth, they came from the Velvet Room."

Ann spoke up. "That prison place we were in, right? That place was pretty strange, even for the Metaverse."

Futaba shook her head. "I'm not sure that place is a part of the Metaverse at all. Do you remember what that hawk nosed man said?" Futaba hunched her back and imitated Igor. "This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter."

Makoto perked up. "Huh, between mind and matter…"

Futaba smirked. "You noticed, too, huh? The Metaverse is a realm of cognition. Shouldn't it exist only in the mind?" The group went silent, pondering. Futaba continued. "Well, I decided to look through what we do have of my mom's research. It doesn't mention the Velvet Room at all."

Akira nodded. "The Velvet Room is also where I first got the Meta-Nav, even though it was the Holy Grail who started that. But I haven't even mentioned that I can still enter the Velvet Room, on occasion."

The group jumped. "For real?!" Ryuji exclaimed.

Akira nodded. "I often entered in my dreams. In addition, Lavenza and Igor implied that others had been to the Velvet Room before. Besides Akechi, I mean."

The group went uncomfortably silent at the mention of Akechi.

Akira sighed. "I know. But let's move on." He straightened his glasses and put a hand down, holding Makoto's subtly as he continued. "Igor mentioned other guests. That means there are other Persona users. And that they don't necessarily use the Metaverse. At least, not in the same way we did."

Yusuke chimed in. "But we can't access the Metaverse without the nav, and our powers only worked there."

"Not entirely. True, we can't summon our Personas, but I would be willing to bet you're all much stronger, physically, than you should be. I know I am. And there's more." Akira closed his eyes and steadied his breathing, allowing his perception to shift before opening them again.

"Whoa, dude! Your eyes! They're yellow, like when you first summoned your Persona!"

"Yes. This is my Third Eye, another power I obtained from the Velvet Room."

The group was stunned. Makoto chimed in. "That explains your amazing observation skills."

Futaba screamed, "Ah! I knew you were cheating!"

Akira returned his perception to normal. "So, to summarize, we know that the Velvet Room isn't a part of the Metaverse, and there are potentially other Persona users out there. So that's why we're going to Inaba." The group looked on excitedly. "A few years back, there were some... interesting murders going on there. The former Detective Prince, Naoto Shirogane, even investigated it. There are a couple of other places I'd like to check out, but Inaba is a good place to start since we're on a time limit." The group nodded.

"There's more. The Mementos merging occurred in Shibuya, but we don't know how far it stretched."

Morgana spoke. "I think it's safe to assume it covered Tokyo. The entire city was covered in those bones." Ann shivered at the memory, but nodded along. "But the whole country? The world? We have no way of knowing how far our battle is known."

"Even the people in the city would rather think it's a dream. Mishima's Phan-site poll is hovering at 50 percent." Yusuke calmly remarked, reaching for a melon bun.

Haru smiled and sipped some tea out of a thermos. "But it's different than before, isn't it? They aren't ignoring Shido's crimes, and it seems like people are working towards a brighter future."

Akira looked slightly dejected, causing Makoto to squeeze his hand reassuringly. "There's no way to know how we affected the public until more time passes." He paused. "There's also the issue of Shido's cronies. There are still people in power that were followers of his. And truth be told, that works in our favor."

The group looked shocked, and were about to exclaim, but he held up his hand. "They're our last lead to Wakaba Ishiki's research, so we just need to watch them and wait for them to slip up. Futaba, I assume you'll have no problem surveilling them?"

Futaba gave a slightly evil laugh. "Please. I've spent the last month or so putting bugs into the system. If anyone uses my Mom's name, or her research pops up, we'll know."

Akira grinned at his team, all looking hopefully at him. "Great. We might not have the Metaverse to change people's hearts, but that doesn't mean we can just abandon our duties as the Phantom Thieves. We're more than just a bunch of delinquents with no place to belong now." He adjusted his glasses. "We're a symbol for change in this country. We'll work in the shadows for now. And while we may be separated for a while, there's no doubt in my mind that we can continue to do amazing things."

Ryuji pumped his fist into the air and shot up. "Hell yeah! You're getting me pumped up!"

Ann smiled reservedly, but pumped both of her fists as well.

Makoto looked over and Akira and gave a firm nod.

"Now, let's-"

"So, how long have you two been dating?" Yusuke brashly chimed in, struggling with the wrapper to his bun.

Makoto went red. The entire group was in silence, looking to their leader for an answer.

Akira sighed. "A few months. With everything going on, we kept it to ourselves until I was out of probation, and until it wouldn't be an issue for Makoto's college applications. I am a known ex-con, after all."

Ryuji sighed and whined. "But you could've told us! We know how to keep a secret."

Morgana laughed. "Maybe the rest of them do. Or are you forgetting how Makoto joined us in the first place?"

Ann sighed and dejectedly looked down, while Ryuji sprang at the cat, who nimbly avoided him. "Eh, shuddup. That don't matter anymore. The point is, we should have had a celebration!"

Makoto blushed, her eyes widening at the suggestion. "A-a celebration? For what exactly?"

Ryuji grinned. "You two, of course! And who needs an excuse to have a party anyways?"

Ann giggled. "We could have combined it with Akira's release from prison celebration. We could have done something at least."

Yusuke finally opened his bread, and turned his attention to his canned tea. "Let's have a toast. To, relatively, new love."

The group raised their drinks one by one, and Morgana perked up on the table, touching his paw to the drinks. Makoto looked at Akira, her face absolutely flushed with embarrassment, but slowly raised her drink as well. Akira chuckled, and followed suit. "To new love. And a new mission." He touched his can to the rest of them, and the group cheered. There, they stayed and enjoyed each other's company for a few minutes, sharing the variety of junk food Ryuji had brought. Once everyone was satisfied, Akira signaled for everyone to pile into the van, and they took off down the road.


End file.
